Monthly Archives: September 2014

Test the Spirits

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John the disciple of Jesus wrote, “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God.”1

How can we be sure when and if God is speaking to us?

When I was a young Christian I wanted to serve God and sometimes felt his Spirit was telling me to do something. However, this “still small voice” within sometimes had me in bondage. In time I came to see that this “voice” was not from God at all because “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom [liberty]“2 and I had anything but freedom.

One’s inner “voice” can come from God, from our self, or from the tempter. If the tempter knows he can’t pull us down into acting out in sinful behaviors, he may try to “push us over the top” where we become (as the old saying goes) “so heavenly minded we are of little or no earthly use.”

So how can we know where the inner voice is coming from? Is it a conviction from God’s Spirit? Could it be a neurotic compulsion from within my self? Or is it from the tempter? With a conviction from God I always have the freedom to say no because “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”2 With a compulsion I am driven and feel that I “have to” do what the “inner voice” is saying no matter what. If from the tempter, it is also more a compulsion.

Keep in mind that God speaks to us through His Word, the Bible, and never contrary to it. He also speaks or leads through various circumstances, as well as through inner convictions. If it is from God, it will always be in harmony with His Word and there will be a sense of freedom. If it is contrary to God’s Word or any type of compulsion, we can know it isn’t God speaking to us and we need to reject it.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please give me the wisdom to know when You are ‘speaking’ to or leading me, and when the ‘voice’ I hear is from myself or the tempter. Teach me to not only know Your voice but always to obey it. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. 1 John 4:1 (NIV).

2. 2 Corinthians 3:17 (NIV).

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Do It Today

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“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”1

“I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good thing therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow-creature, let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” This timely advice is attributed to Stephen Grellet, Franco-American Quaker (1773-1855).

John, one of Jesus’ disciples, wrote, “Let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions.”2

Do you need to make a phone call, send a card, or do something special for your wife, husband, children, friend, or neighbor? If so, do it today. Do you need to resolve an impaired relationship? Do it today. Do you need to take care of that responsibility you’ve been putting off for weeks/months? Do it today. Do you need to tell someone how much you love them? Do it today.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please use me to be as Jesus to the people in my world. Today. Help me to be a part of what You are doing in the world. Today. Whatever loving deeds I need to do or responsibility to fulfill help me to do it today. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Paul the Apostle, Galatians 6:2 (RSV).

2. 1 John 3:18 (TLB).

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Sweet Revenge?

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“He who has been forgiven little loves little.”1

In Today in the Word the story is told about a woman who once came to Ibn Saud, the first king of Saudi Arabia, requesting that the man who killed her husband be put to death. The man had fallen from the top of a palm tree when he had been gathering dates and landed on this lady’s husband and killed him.

The king said, “It is your right to exact compensation, and it is also your right to ask for this man’s life. But it is my right to decree how he shall die. You shall take this man with you and he shall be tied to the foot of a palm tree and then you shall climb to the top of the tree and cast yourself down upon him from that height. In that way you will take his life as he took your husband’s. Or perhaps,” Ibn Saud added, “you would prefer after all to take the blood money?”

The widow took the money.vTo fail to forgive keeps us bound to the past. It is a killer—not of the one who caused the resentment, but the one who carries the resentment. As another has put it, “Failing to forgive is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.”

Also, as Jesus said, “He who has been forgiven little loves little.” One way to love much, therefore, is to confess all our wrongs and sins, not only to God, but to the one/s we have hurt and do all we can to make restitution and be forgiven ourselves. For he who has been forgiven much loves much!

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to confess all my sins and ways I have hurt others (name them), and find forgiveness from You and them so I will love much and freely forgive all who have hurt me—as You have freely forgiven me. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Jesus in Luke 7:47 (NIV).

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Where Was God on 9-11-01?

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“Where have you laid him [Lazarus]?” He [Jesus] asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied. Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, “See how He loved him.”1

The question: Where was God when my baby sister died suddenly? When my husband died in the prime of life? When my child was kidnapped, raped, and murdered? The question is as old as Job and as fresh as today. So many asked where was God on this day—September 11, 2001—when terrorists destroyed the New York trade towers and smashed into the Pentagon killing some three thousand people.

So where was God? God was and is where He always is. He saw it all. As Jesus wept when His friend Lazarus died, so also He wept grievously on this tragic day as He does when all senseless tragedies happen.

Did God cause it to happen? No, never! Did He know it would happen? Yes. Why didn’t He stop it? And why didn’t He stop Hitler massacring millions of Jews, and why didn’t He stop Stalin and others who have slaughtered millions? And why doesn’t He stop rapists, kidnappers, and murderers … and terrorists … and suicide bombers … and all wars?

For the simple reason that He has given mankind a free will to choose—either to follow and obey Him or to go our own sinful, and often evil way. It’s mankind’s choice. It is every single individual’s choice. God never created or wanted puppets on a string. Every one of us has been given a free will. The fact is that God is where He always was. He never left us. We, as a human race, left Him. When tragedies occur, the question shouldn’t be, “Where is God?” Rather it should be, “Where are we?”

However, when we choose and go the way of evil, the heart of God grieves. In fact, because God cared for and loved us so much is the reason why He gave his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die to pay the penalty for all our sins and deliver us from evil and from sin’s eternal consequences—hell and eternal separation from Him—the source of all love and life.

Yes, Jesus wept on this day in 2001, and I believe He grieved with the thousands of others who also grieved on this day because their heart was torn with grief. And He still grieves with all who are suffering today and every day because of mankind’s acts of senseless evil. And He grieves for all lost souls who could freely receive God’s forgiveness for all their sins, but they refuse or fail to do so.

As the hymn writer expressed in words to this effect:

Does Jesus care?

O yes he cares,

His heart is touched with my grief,

The long hours weary,

So sad and dreary,

I know my Savior cares.

Suggested prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that when I hurt, You feel my pain and grieve with me. Thank You, too, that You also grieve when evil in the world is unleashed and people are struck down in the prime of life. And thank You that You have the gift of forgiveness and salvation for all who come to You confessing their sinfulness and their need to be ultimately delivered from all the evil in the world. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

NOTE: For help to be absolutely sure you’re a real Christian (without having to be religious) click on the “Know God” button below or on: http://tinyurl.com/8glq9.

1. John 11:34-36 (NIV).

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Just Do It

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“You are to go into all the world and preach [communicate] the good news to everyone everywhere.”1

One writer pointed out that there is a scene in “Winnie the Pooh” that goes something like the following:

Pooh: “Did you fall into the river, Eeyore?”

Eeyore: “Silly of me, wasn’t it?”

Pooh: “Is the river uncomfortable this morning?”

Eeyore: “Well, yes, the dampness you know.”

Pooh: “You really ought to be more careful!”

Eeyore: “Thanks for the advice.”

Pooh: “I think you’re sinking.”Eeyore: “Pooh, if it’s not too much trouble, would you mind rescuing me?”

How sad when people all around us are lost without Christ and we discuss outreach, form outreach committees, conduct seminars on outreach, read books about outreach, and do everything in the church except outreach.

As somebody else said, “If you see a dangerous, poisonous snake, just kill it. Don’t appoint a committee on snakes! Just do it!”

Good advice for many areas of life—including reaching the lost with the saving gospel of the Jesus Christ as He so commissioned us to do! For a very simple and attractive way to help do this please see https://learning.actsweb.org/people_power_invite.php.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to be a doer of Your Word and not just a hearer or a talker. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Jesus, in Mark 16:15 (TLB).

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A Harmless “Dangerous” Dog

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“The sluggard says, ‘There is a lion in the road, a fierce lion roaming the streets!’ As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed. The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.”1

Alan Smith in his “Thought for the Day” tells about the man who, upon entering the little country store, noticed a sign saying, “Danger! Beware of the Dog!” posted on the glass door. Inside he noticed a harmless old hound dog asleep on the floor beside the cash register.

He asked the store manager, “Is that the dog folks are supposed to beware of?”

“Yep, that’s him,” he replied.

The stranger couldn’t help but be amused. “That certainly doesn’t look like a dangerous dog to me. Why in the world would you post that sign?”

“Because,” said the owner, “before I posted that sign people kept tripping over him.”2

I’m sure that most people reading this Daily Encounter aren’t lazy in their everyday life, but sometimes when it comes to the church there’s almost always a trouble-maker or two, a control freak, or someone who is quick to criticize but never does a thing to lift a helping hand and, like the “dog” in the store mentioned above, just hangs around and gets in the way.

Let’s always remember that if we criticize and don’t do anything to help in some way, we don’t have a right to criticize; rather we could at least offer and try to help. He who can and does, does well; but he who can and doesn’t do, very often is the one who criticizes!

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to be a doer and a good helper in the work You want done in the world in which I live, and also help in some way in the wider world. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Proverbs 26:13-15 (NIV).
2. Alan Smith, “Thought for the Day,” http://www.tftd-online.com.

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Sound Doctrine

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The Apostle Paul wrote, “He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.”1

In the early days of the Christian church Paul was giving instructions to Titus regarding qualifications for church leadership. One requirement was that leaders were to be well established in sound doctrine; that is, in the understanding and teaching of God’s Word. Unfortunately, there are some leaders and some churches whose doctrine may be sound, but as Vance Havner put it, sound asleep! Sound awake doctrine is critical because if we are not well grounded in God’s truth, we can easily be led astray by persuasive and charming false teachers. As another has said, “If we don’t stand for truth, we can fall for anything.”

Sound doctrine, as critically important as it is, is not enough in and of itself. It needs to be balanced with love. Without love, doctrine can become deathly legalism or modern day Phariseeism. On the other hand, love without sound doctrine can become, at best, “sloppy agape” and at worst empty humanism. The real church and true Christianity is based on God’s truth (sound doctrine) and genuine love. Both are equally important.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please help me to know and understand Your truth but give me a loving heart to live it as well as to learn it. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Titus 1:9 (NIV).

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Should I Marry an Angry Man?

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“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”1

A Daily Encounter reader asks, “I just broke my engagement with a man whom I deeply loved. We have had a lot of problems and when he gets angry, he is out of control and says very hurtful words. He wants us to get back together but I am very confused. How can I know God’s will?”

Dear Joanne (name changed), it is true that broken engagements and broken relationships can be incredibly painful. I know. I’ve been there. However, to discern God’s will in these matters it might be wise to first ask, “What is not God’s will?” In answering this question, you can be certain that it isn’t God’s will for you to allow anyone to abuse you. People who do are almost always codependent; that is, they have a need to “fix” others in order to avoid facing and “fixing” their own problems.

Second, you can be certain that God’s will is that you first work on your own growth and maturity. There is a reason why you were attracted to an angry man. For instance, was your father an angry man by any chance? Whatever the reason, it is imperative that you ask God to face you with the truth about yourself, and to show you the issues in your life that you need to resolve. Furthermore, what we fail to resolve we are destined to repeat.

While God doesn’t make our decisions for us, He will give us wisdom if we ask Him for it.

Obviously we need to be very wise in such situations and not allow ourselves to be controlled by our heart alone. The reality is that as long as this man has a serious anger problem, anyone who marries him will be heading for future heartache and disaster.

Unless this man gets into an in-depth anger management counseling program (that probably isn’t likely) to resolve his anger problem, it is imperative that you don’t go back to him. And even if he does get into such a counseling program, you would need to have absolute assurance from his counselor that he has resolved his anger (and any other relational problem/s).

Much wiser for you to resolve your hurt and move on without this man in your life. Better to feel hurt and disappointed now than suffer for the rest of your life. I trust these suggestions will help.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, in every painful situation please give me the wisdom to see, first of all, what I am contributing to the problem, and the good sense to resolve my own issues first. And then help me to see the overall truth of the conflict I am in so I will know exactly what I need to do. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. James 1:5 (NASB).

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Songs in the Night

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Job asked, “Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night?”1

I have read how Ludwig van Beethoven, one of the world’s greatest musicians, was born into a musical family in Germany.

By the age of eleven he was already composing his own music and conducting an orchestra. In his late teens he went to Vienna for further study. There he reached fame, though not fortune.

According to the story, one evening when Beethoven visited in a cobbler’s house, he noticed that the young lady at the piano was blind, so he offered to play the piece for her. He did so for her for more than an hour and while he did, darkness fell and the lone candle in the room had gone out.

Outside in the night sky the moon shone brightly and sent its radiant beams glistening into the room where Beethoven sat playing beautiful music. He was so inspired by the appreciation of his music by the young lady and the beauty of the atmosphere in the room that he composed his famous “Moonlight Sonata.”

Do you ever feel that your dreams have been shattered and you feel all alone in the darkness of despair? I certainly have. However, when our life is committed to Christ, it’s in these “dark nights of the soul” that God is working in us to give us more understanding of life and compassion for others, and in time will bring back “beautiful music” into our life.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, please put a song in my heart, a song of gratitude and love for You for all that You have done for and given to me. Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Job 35:10 (NIV).

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Heartprints of Kindness

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“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”1 “He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.”2

William Wordsworth also said it well: “That best portion of a good man’s life; his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love.”

The following well-known anonymous poem is well worth a reminder:

“Whatever our hands touch –

We leave fingerprints!

On walls, on furniture

On doorknobs, dishes, books.

There’s no escape.

As we touch we leave our identity.”

So for today’s suggested prayer: “Dear God:

‘Wherever I go today

Help me leave heartprints!

Heartprints of compassion

Of understanding and love.

‘Heartprints of kindness
And genuine concern.
May my heart touch a lonely neighbor
Or a runaway daughter
Or an anxious mother
Or perhaps an aged grandfather.

‘Send me out today
To leave heartprints.
And if someone should say,
“I felt your touch,”
May they also sense the love
that is deep within my heart.’3

“Thank You God for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus’s name, amen.”

1. Ephesians 4:32 (NIV).

2. Proverbs 14:31 (NIV).

3. Author Unknown

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